<p>Now price isnt a huge factor, but in this case I want to keep it in mind, its more than a 1,000 dollar difference between the two ( why are the macs so expensive). But if I could get some opinions on the two that would be great!</p>
<p>I’m going to vote Macbook here, though I personally don’t think it’s necessary to amp it all the way up to the 15".
The Vaio’s battery only lasts for “up to 3 hours.”
Which will be killer. No kidding.</p>
<p>But take a look at adding a larger hard drive to the Macbook 13". It’s less than $1,200 with a student discount for the 2.4 gHz with a 320 GB hard drive.
I personally think that the 15" Macbook Pro is really bulky and heavy to carry around.</p>
<p>In the age-old Mac V. Windows debate, it really comes down to user comfort and ability. Moreover, what will you be doing with your computer?</p>
<p>But that’s boring.</p>
<p>Anyways, my first criticism is that you should not be buying through the middleman, i.e., Best Buy. Sure, they might look like they offer you a better deal, but that is short term thinking.</p>
<p>Reasons behind that are as follows. You are buying from a seller, not the manufacturer. And what happens when your computer breaks, which I guarantee will happen, even to the ‘almighty’ mac. It really simplifies the repair process if you just cut the bull and get serviced by the people who created what you bought.
Secondly, you might get some awesome offers/discounts if you buy through an EPP, or employee pricing program. Rutgers should be into getting you your computer at a discount, so don’t be afraid to give their ITS department a call.</p>
<p>Personally, I believe both of these computers seem over-engineered to fit your needs as a college student unless you are a graphics design/engineering/blah blah blah major.</p>
<p>Don’t be afraid to save yourself money, and hassle! :]</p>
<p>I would look into a 13 Inch mac, but Im looking for an i5 or i7 processor, which are only available on 15 and 17 inch macbook pros. Thanks guys! Anyone else?</p>
<p>For $2,000 I’d expect 8 GB of ram, 1 TB hard drive, a far better processor than 2.53 GHZ, i5. I can’t believe people buy this stuff. Just because it is a mac doesn’t mean you should pay a unwarranted premium for it.</p>
<p>If the best specs for the money is your sole concern, then the Sony would be the better choice. If superior usability is your main concern, then the Mac would be a better choice. For myself, the ease of use, tight hardware-software integration, included iLife applications, and hardware construction quality and details make it an easy choice to spend the extra money for a MacBook.</p>
<p>It’s still cheaper to buy a PC and then OS X separately for it if you’re really that much into OS X. Just don’t get a PC with AMD processors as OS X doesn’t have drivers for those since no Mac uses them. </p>
<p>If you like the aluminum body then the HP Envy 14 costs around $1k and has specs equivalent to/better than the 15" MBP. </p>
<p>iLife can be replicated free-of-cost. Is it really anything special?.. it saves you like an hour’s worth of trouble to download and install the necessary applications. Consider it a one-time one-hour job that pays you $900.</p>
<p>Tight hardware-software integration is classic apple ******** that they keep touting around. Have you noticed a significant performance difference between OS X vs Linux on the same computer, or are you just repeating what they told you?</p>
<p>Upgrades in terms of hard drive space and RAM can be done at a fraction of the cost if you DIY, there are plenty of youtube videos out there that my grandmother could properly follow on proper installation of these components.</p>
<p>Don’t let Apple rip you off with a $300 RAM upgrade, DIY, it does not void your warranty.</p>
<p>IMHO don’t limit yourself to the VAIO/Mac. Look around more.</p>
<p>Personally I recommend the ASUS Thin & Light series. The Thin & Light’s are pretty hard to beat. They are thin, light (unbelievable right?) and have great battery life.</p>